Trialkylgalliums are commonly used gallium sources in the fields of epitaxial semiconductor growth and/or processing, vapor or plasma etching, plasma deposition or thin film deposition, e.g., metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD). Trialkylgalliums are most commonly synthesized from gallium trichloride, which often results in zinc being present in the form of dialkylzinc up to a few ppm level. Zinc is a p-type impurity and even a few ppm may be detrimental in semiconductor applications. Dialkylzinc can be very difficult to remove from trialkylgallium by common methods, such as distillation, due to the close proximity of their boiling points. For example, trimethylgallium boils at 56.degree. C. and dimethylzinc at 46.degree. C.
It would be desirable to remove substantially all zinc from a trialkylgallium supply, and this constitutes a primary object of the present invention. It is a further object of the present invention to synthesize trialkylgallium in a novel manner.